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Welcome to the site. Here you will find a growing collection of ideas, practices and projects aligned to the concept of soft power.

While Joseph Nye's original coining of the term Soft Power has, till now, been explored mostly for its relevance to international relations, on this site we pull it back to its constituent parts and see how it can be made relevant and useful at a variety of levels.

If soft power was defined in contrast to hard power, then it must be as useful to individuals, communities and organisations as it is to nations. More than that, if one wants to understand where the macro soft power of nations arises from, then it might help to look at the micro soft power of its leaders and citizens.

WHAT IS SOFT POWER?

Soft Power is a 'psychosocial' phenomenon, sourced in the culture of a nation or the character of an individual.

It arises in relationship with another country, community or person and is experienced as the power of attraction. It is carried through the networks where image, reputation, and popularity are forged and is expressed as the ability to influence the decisions of others without the use of force.

Soft Power is of interest to nations because it translates directly into influence – other nations listen. It also leads indirectly to more trade, tourism and investment. It is of interest to individuals because it gives them clout. Soft powered individuals get things done because others want to support them.

Soft Power cannot be manufactured, contrived, bought or sold. But it can be generated through paying attention to behaviour, activity, values, and relationship.

Soft Power Network is a meeting point for those interested in generating soft power and a resource for those looking for practices, tools, and help to use them.

I suspect it was no accident that Simon Anholt's masterclass was held on the 28th floor of Millbank Tower -- one of the higher points in London (though, not yet the Shard). Instantly we were breathing the rarefied air of the global consultant,…

The conference in Nagpur is the 21st in a series of such events in various cities across the country and a few cities abroad too. "India used to be the power house of the world, because its power was rooted in spirituality and benevolence of its rulers. But with the shifting of power to the west, power began to be equated with brute strength," said Juma. The Brahma Kumaris have termed the former as 'soft power' and the latter as 'hard power'. This series of talks has been organized based on their belief that power is going to return to India soon. The aim is to prepare a consensus on what kind of power India wants to have - hard or soft

This guy gets it: One of the most striking aspects of the epoch-making Commons debate on Syria was the way many MPs cited the emailed opposition of their constituents to armed intervention as a reason for voting against the proposed action.